Benjamin and João loved being neighbors! Benjamin lived in a small house with his family, and João lived next door in a house with a big yard. The yard used to be full of cows and chickens, but now there was only one cow named Branca. João lived with his mom, and Branca's milk was sometimes all they had to eat.
Whenever he could, Benjamin brought snacks to João’s house so they could play in the yard. João’s mom was very happy about that, because they loved playing together. João liked to play tag, and Benjamin liked to play pretend pirate games!
One day, João's mom told João they needed more than just milk to eat, so he had to sell Branca. João was sad, but he knew his mom was right. He called Benjamin, and together they went to the market to sell Branca.
As they walked past a corner, they met a nice old man. The man came up to João and Benjamin and said, "Would you like to trade your cow for some magic beans?" João and Benjamin looked at each other. They thought, "Beans can make more food than just milk!" So they said yes!
When they got back to João’s house, João's mom was surprised to hear what they had done. She started to cry! "Oh, those beans are not magic!" she said. "That old man tricked us!" She told Benjamin to go home and João to go to bed.
João was sad and didn't know what they would eat. He was so angry that he threw the beans out the window and went to sleep.
The next morning, João was surprised to see a big green beanstalk in his yard. It was so tall it touched the clouds! João's mom wasn't sure what to do with it, but she let João go play with Benjamin.
João and Benjamin were curious, so they decided to climb the beanstalk. It was a long climb! But Benjamin was brave and climbed with João. When they reached the top of the clouds, they saw a giant castle!
A giant woman came out of the castle and said hello. She was kind, but she told João and Benjamin to leave because her husband was a giant who ate children! The ground started to shake, and João and Benjamin quickly hid.
While they were hiding, they found some gold coins on the ground. João put them in his pocket. When they thought the giant was gone, they ran out of the castle and climbed down the beanstalk.
"I think my treehouse is a better hiding place than this giant castle!" said Benjamin.
João agreed. "We can live simply," he said, "but when the coins run out, we can climb the beanstalk again."
So João and his mom lived happily with the coins João had found. João’s mom now gave Benjamin pieces of cake to take home, because she was so grateful to him.
"My family will be very happy to have cake," said Benjamin, smiling. He was brave and always happy to help his friends.
But eventually, the coins ran out. João and Benjamin decided to climb the beanstalk again, even though they knew the giant was dangerous. This time, they hid in the giant's kitchen.
The giant was taking care of a fat hen. João and Benjamin watched as the hen laid golden eggs! They waited for the giant to fall asleep, then carefully grabbed the hen. The hen was quiet, and they managed to climb down the beanstalk with her. It was hard, but Benjamin was brave and helped João carry the hen.
"Now we will always have something to eat!" João's mom said happily.
But João had seen a golden harp in the castle. He wanted it, so he decided to climb the beanstalk again, this time by himself.
The next day, João climbed the beanstalk without telling Benjamin. He knew where the harp was and wanted to be quick. But this time, the giant was waiting for him at the door! The giant chased João, but the boy ran as fast as he could and escaped.
João went back to Benjamin’s house and told him everything. Benjamin was worried. They decided to cut down the beanstalk so the giant could never come down again.
They were both small, but they worked hard, and after a long time, the beanstalk was gone. The giant would never be able to reach them again!
"We don't need more than what we have," said Benjamin. "The essentials are all we need, and danger isn't worth it!"
João's mom was relieved that the beanstalk was gone. She invited João and Benjamin to have a delicious snack.
And that afternoon, the table at João's house was full: of bread, cake, love, and laughter! The essentials!
